Shropshire singer Tara Kelsey and her pianist, Wayne C. Baddeley are our am dram stars of the week

Based in Shropshire, Tara has been singing since an early age, thanks to encouragement from her late father, John. Following a successful tribute to him last August in which Wayne accompanied her, Tara is now all set to perform her latest venture, The Golden Age of Musicals, on August 25 at Cosy Hall in Newport.

I spoke to Tara about her love of music.

“I have spent many years performing in productions in and around the Midlands,” she says. “I’ve taken lead roles in musicals and operettas and particularly enjoyed working with Tettenhall Operatic Society.

“My love of concert work as a soloist takes me to all sorts of venues and charity functions. I’m now intent on building a season of vintage inspired musical events celebrating the music of the 30s, 40s and 50s. The Golden Age of Musicals is the first one in the season.

“The concert is a showcase of timeless classics; from the genius of Richard Rodgers and Cole Porter to hits made famous by Mario Lanza, Kathryn Grayson, Frank Sinatra and Eddy Duchin,” Tara says.

“There is a whole host of tunes to enjoy, including I Could Have Danced All Night from My Fair Lady, Can’t Help Lovin Dat Man from Jerome Kern’s Show Boat and Because Your Mine; I always like to include a Mario Lanza song in the programme as he’s such an inspiration.”

“Audiences can also look forward to So in Love from Kiss Me Kate, Some Enchanted Evening from South Pacific and Wayne and I will perform a selection of piano medleys of the music of George Gershwin and Cole Porter.

“We’ll be serving light refreshments during the interval and people are free to bring along their own bottle of wine.”

Meanwhile, Wayne’s work has taken him all over the world, from cruise liners to TV shows. He’s performed with the BBC and Joe Loss Orchestras, as well as with Kenny Ball and Acker Bilk.

From Stoke on Trent, Wayne has also appeared alongside comedians Jasper Carrott and Jim Bowen as well as many Gerry and the Pacemakers, The Searchers and The Animals.

Tara and Wayne’s aim is to raise money for the Cottage Care Trust, based in Wellington and Tara and Wayne have donated a block of tickets for the show to the centre.

l To book tickets, priced £10, call 0795 7661222 or visit Tara’s Facebook page.

l For information about Wellington Cottage Care Trust visit http://www.wellingtoncare.org.uk